New Friends, Old Fears
by Blak-Ice
Summary: "Why would I be jealous of her?" "Because you like Soul." There's a new team to the Academy, and Maka's more then glad to make some new friends. But when a girl from Soul's past gets thrown into the mix, how will she deal with her true feelings for him? And what kind of effect will the mysterious power in their new friend's soul have on them when a new witch tries to obtain it?
1. Chapter 1: Arrival

Chapter 1: Arrival

"Code! Wake up! We're gonna be late for our first day at the Academy!" I heard someone yell. "Despierta imbecile!" they yelled in spanish.

I groaned. I only knew one person that liked to yell at me in Spanish. What in the hell was so important that Keyla was at me this early in the morning? I mean, I'm used to her yelling, but not this early. Though, for all I know, it's 3 in the afternoon. I still hadn't opened my eyes, and really didn't want to.

"Ugh…Keyla, go away," I grumbled.

"You're a lazy sack of crap sometimes, you know that?"

"And you're a annoying worrywart who nags me about every little thing that you can."

"Fine, whatever. I'll be in the living room when you're ready to go," she said. I could faintly hear her footsteps as they got further and further away.

I sighed in content. I could finally relax without having to hear her complain. Though for some reason, something she said was still nagging me, though I couldn't put my finger on it.

**3****rd**** POV**

Blackstar yawned as he kicked his feet up on his desk. He hated being lectured to during school. He'd much rather be out, fighting with someone then having to sit through another one of Sid's lessons.

"Man, I'm so bored. Wish there was something to do round this place," he complained.

"I'm sure something interesting will happen soon," Tsubaki, his weapon partner reassured. "But you really should pay attention. There's a big test coming up and you really need to be prepared."

"Yea, whatever, Tsubaki. You know how great I am. I don't need to study!" he yelled, laughing as his loud voice resonated.

"And what, Blackstar, is so funny?" Sid said, slamming his textbook on his desk.

"Uh…not-nothing."

"Then shut up and pay attention!" he said, returning to his lesson.

Blackstar, slid down in his seat. He hated having to sit in the class, especially when there were so many people out there he could fight.

"Hey, cheer up man," Soul said, elbowing his friend. "I heard there's a new kid around here somewhere."

"Really!" Blackstar said, enthusiasm pouring from him.

"Yea. Don't know where though. But I bet he's strong."

"Don't tell me you two are planning another ambush like you did Kid when we first got here," Liz said, painting her nails for the third time this week.

"Yes. It was very annoying and I'm sure that you'll only embarrass yourselves," Kid said, though he could tell by the look in Blackstar's eye that he wasn't pay any attention whatsoever.

"Oh man! We gotta find him, Soul! He's not gonna know what hit'em when I get done with him!"

"Jeez, Blackstar, do you always have to pick on the new kid?" Maka said from her seat next to Soul. "The kid hasn't even done anything yet, and you're already trying to pick a fight with him. For all you know, this could have some type of problem. You know, there are reasons why people are here besides strength. And another thing-"

"And another thing, no one wants to hear you complain and lecture then til their ears bleed, Maka," Soul mocked.

Maka's face turned red with anger. Without a second thought, Maka grabbed her book, effectively slamming it onto Soul's head.

"And that'll teach you to make fun of me," she grumbled, turning to the front again.

"Whatever, Maka. I'm sure this kid's just like everyone else and just want's to get stronger. Though, nobody can be stronger than me," Blackstar said, jumping onto his desk.

"Is there a problem here, Blackstar?" A menacing voice said from behind him. A shiver flew up his spine as he slowly turned around, sweat running down his face. There stood Sid, angry and terrifying. "I guess I'll just have to teach you in a way you can understand."

"NO, NO,NO,NO,NO! I'll be quiet," he said, taking his seat and holding up his book, though it was upside down.

As luck would have it, the bell rang, signaling the end of the period. Before anyone could say anything, Blackstar was up and out the door, ready to start his search for the new student.

Tsubaki let out a sigh. "Well, I'd better go find him before he gets himself hurt. I'll see you guys later." She called before running off after her meister.

"Soul, promise me you aren't going to try that again," Maka said, turning to look at her partner, who was already on his way out the room. "Soul! I'm serious."

"Yeah, yeah. I heard ya. But I ain't promising nothin. I'm not gonna go lookin for a fight, but if this guy crosses me…" he said, turning back to look at Maka, "I'm not holding back." he grinned as he heard Maka groan and and try to catch up with him.

**Code's POV **

I let out a loud yawn as I finally woke up. I stretched, letting the feel of the new day run through me. The sunlight bounced of my caramel colored skin, warming my body slightly. Slipping on my house shoes, I ran a hand through my black dreadlocks and made my way into the living room.

I was surprised to see Keyla sitting on the couch. Well, not surprised to see her as she was always up before I was, but that she wasn't dressed in her pajamas, but instead was wearing an emerald green t-shirt that showed off her curved, black jeans that looked skin tight, a pair of black flats, and the sliver necklace I got her for her birthday last year. She always wore green because she said that it always complemented her long, waist length black hair and her eyes, which were as bright as emeralds. I think it also made her Hispanic skin glow a nice light brown.

"Hey," I said, making my way toward the kitchen. "Why are you so dressed up?"

"Because we have our first day at the Academy today, remember?"

"Oh yeah, I paused to chugged down a glass of orange juice, placing the carton back in the fridge. "What time does school start?"

"Oh, about 2 and half hours ago," she said, glaring at me with her emerald green eyes. I hated when she glared at me with them; it always made me feel like I was a child ago, being reprimanded by my parents.

I coughed as I swallowed the juice in surprise. "2HOURS AGO! Why didn't you wake me up!"

"I did, but you told me to leave you alone," she grinned.

I grumbled about how much of an annoyance she could be and ran to my room to get dressed. I grabbed an all black t-shirt that fit well over my muscles, and my blue puffy vest with my favorite black jeans and sneakers. After tying my dreads in a ponytail that reached the middle of my back, I put my diamond earrings, dog chain with my name on it, and black wristbands on. As I ran out the door, I grabbed my backpack that had a picture of a safe tumbler on the it, and ran straight for the front door where Keyla was waiting for me, shaking her head, like always.

20 minutes of walking later, we were making our way up the stairs of the Academy.

"Wow. This place is even bigger then my dad said it was," Keyla said.

"Yea. I wonder-"

"Hey, you down there!" I turned to see some kid with spiky blue hair stand on one of the spears that extend from the building. "You must be the new kid."

"Uh…yeah, I guess," I said, looking at Keyla who just shrugged her shoulders.

"The name's Blackstar, and I'm the star of this show," he said, jumping to the ground. "1st thing you gotta know, never try to take my spotlight, and you definitely took my spotlight."

"Um…how? I just got here."

"New guys always get people talking, and that means, they're not focusing on the real star, me. 2nd thing is, when you steal my spotlight, you gotta fight," he said, grinning from ear to ear.

"Oh god. 5 minutes here and you're already getting into a fight," Keyla sighed.

"Hey now, I'm not doing anything. This guy's challenging me. And I never said I was gonna fight," said in my defense.

"You don't have to. I've known you since we were kids. I can read you like a book."

I grinned. "Yea, I guess you can. So, you with me?"

"Of course. Not like you could survive without me anyway," he laughed.

"Well, someone's awfully cocky this morning. Where was all that confidence last night?" I asked, grinning when she started to turn bright red.

"Now's not the time to be talking about our…private, business, Code," she said, looking away as I laughed.

"Alright, alright. Now, about you, what was it, Blackstar? Well, if it's a fight you want, it's a fight you'll-"

"Hold it right there," said some tall guy with a giant screw coming out of his head. "At it again, are we, Blackstar?"

"Ew! Oh my god!" Keyla screamed, hiding behind me. "Does that guy have a screw in his head! How is he even alive!"

"Well, you must be the new students, Code Phase and Keyla Marks. Nice to meet you," he said, walking up and extending his hand. "I'm professor Stein."

"Nice to meet you," I said. "Sorry about Key. She gets a bit jumpy when she see stuff like that."

"It's quite alright. Now, before you begin, I should warn you, there are rules about fighting here at the school. One being that you must have an active teacher there to referee the fight. That being said, I guess I'll do it."

"Alright, sounds good."

"Another thing, about Blackstar, well, let's just say, he's not usually alone."

"What are you-"

"So, Blackstar. I see you found him," said a guy with red eyes, white hair, and seriously sharp teeth. "He doesn't look so tough," he said with a grin.

"Oh, Soul. It's you. Glad to see you can to see my performance," Blackstar said, pumping his fist.

"Yea, yea. So I'm guessing Tsubaki isn't going to help you?"

"Nah. I told her to sit this one out. I'm not gonna need a weapon to beat this guy."

"Oh really? You think so?" I asked, annoyed with this guy already.

"Yea, really."

"Alright, we'll just see about that. Keyla!" I shouted.

"Right!" she jumped out from behind me, but as she was about to transform, she froze. "No…it can't be…"

"Keyla? What's wrong?"

"It's…it's him…" she said, pointing to the guy, Soul.

"Him who? Do you know him?"

"Soul!" a blonde girl called, running up to him. She was soon followed by another girl who looked older with long black hair, a kid in an all black suit, and two girls dressed identically like cowgirls. "What are you doing!" she yelled.

"Just came to watch Blackstar, like I said."

"It is…"Keyla said. "Soul Eater Evans," she growled, stomping her feet over to him.

"Um…do I know you?" he said, eying her up and down.

"You jackass! How can you not remember me!" she shouted.

I ran over, grabbing her by the shoulders. "Whoa, there. Easy girl. What's going on? How do you know this guy?"

"Soul, who is this girl? And how do you know her?"

"I don't. At least, I don't think I do. I mean, she looks vaguely familiar, but nothing's really ringing a bell."

"So you don't remember the girl you used to pick on everday! The girl who you used to stare at in class all the time! The girl who gave you her first kiss!" Keyla shouted, becoming angrier and angrier with each sentence.

"Wait, no way! You can't be serious! KeyKey? Little KeyKey Marks? The little cry baby?" he said, laughing his ass off.

"Soul, what the hell! Who is this girl?"

"Her name's Keyla, and she was the first girl I ever dated," He said grinning.

"And also the girl who hates you because you dumped me because I hadn't started puberty yet!" she shouted, face red.

"You did what!" the blonde girl yelled. Before anyone could say anything, she slammed a book over his head, effectively silencing him. "Disgusting pig!"

This seemed to calm Keyla down because she stood there, watching his crumpled heap of a body as it twitched on the ground.

"Sorry about that. My names Maka, and I'm Soul's meister."

"I'm Keyla, and this Code, my meister. And for the record, I'm sorry for your burden," she said, pointing at Soul.

"It's fine. So, why don't I introduce everyone and give you guys a tour of the Academy. This is Tsubaki, Blackstar's weapon partner."

"It's very nice to meet you," she said, bowing to us.

"You too. And to be honest, I don't understand how you can put up with his over inflated ego," I chuckled.

"None of us do. This is Death the Kid, the son of the grim reaper, and his partner's Liz and Patti."

"Pleasure to make you acquaintance. And may I complement you on your wristbands."

"My wristbands?"

"Yes. Most people only wear one, but you wear two, one on each wrist, perfect symmetry."

"Oh…uh, ok. Thanks."

"Yea, you might wanna get used to that. That's how he always is," Liz said, rolling her eyes, while Patti seemed preoccupied with a butterfly.

"Well now that that's done, let's go on with the tour," Maka said, turning to lead us.

"HEY! What about our fight!" Blackstar yelled, stomping his foot like a child.

In one swift motion, Maka slammed her book on his head too, leaving him crumpled on the ground next to Soul. "How's that for an answer!" she shouted. "Now, back to the tour."

"I think we might just fit in here after all, Key," I said, smiling.


	2. Chapter 2: Team Formation

Chapter 2: Team Formation

"And this is where our class, Crescent Moon, usually will have our classes unless otherwise told by our instructors," Maka said.

"Wow. This place is great," I said, examining the class room.

"Too bad we've already missed 3 hours of school," Keyla declared with a smirk. Of course I knew she was just trying to piss me off. Unfortunately, it was working.

"Okay, Key. I heard you the first time, so shut it already!" I said, walking back to the group.

"Well if you weren't such a lazy bum all the time-"

"Don't even start with that, Keyla," I said, turning to look at her. "Even if I got up at the same time as you, I'd still have like 3 hours to sleep before I'd even have to shower and still have time to eat breakfast. You take so damn long just to get ready, it's not even funny," I said, grinning as her face turned a light red.

"I know how you feel man," Soul said, patting me on the shoulder. "It's so hard sometimes to get in the bathroom just to brush my teeth because our cat, Blair, takes forever, when half the time, she doesn't even go anywhere. She spends the whole day at home sleeping."

"Wait, you have a cat that uses your bathroom?" I asked.

"Well, she not a normal cat," Maka said.

"Got that right," Soul grumbled.

"She's a cat, but she has magical powers, and can change into a human whenever she wants. She can be a bit bratty when she doesn't get what she wants, and whines a lot about being left home alone since we won't allow her to have other cats over. It's actually really annoying, but she tries to behave as best as she can."

"Except when she's walking around naked or sticking her boob's in someone's face," Soul said with a smirk. My guess is that Maka wasn't particularly happy with this because she, once again, slammed her book over his head, while shouting out "MAKA-CHOP!"

"She's really a sweet little cat once you get to know her," she smiled, acting as though she hadn't just bashed her partner's head in.

"Glad to see someone's finally putting you in your places, Evans," Keyla said. I turned to her, giving her a warning look, to which she snorted with a pout and crossed her arms. I could tell that she was still holding a grudge against him. Before we moved to Death City, she told me all bout Soul Evan, the first guy she fell in love with and the same guy who broke her heart. Apparently, he was starting to get bad on his reputation that he was dating her as when she was a kid, she wasn't exactly the most attractive. He claimed that he never really paid attention to that, but that he was getting ready to break up with her, but never gave her a reason why. She thought it was because she hadn't started puberty like most of the girls in their class, which angered her, but also upset her even more as she was already being picked on for that by said girls. For weeks, she was a complete wreck. I had never met him myself as I live a few hours away from her, but when I heard about what happened, I knew she need comfort. I begged and pleaded with my parents to let me go to stay with her, but failed until her parents agreed with me that it was a good idea. They figured she could use a good friend like me by her side. I was also planning on kicking the crap out of Soul, but, as luck would have it, his family moved right before I got there. After a while, word got around that he was leaving to become a weapon at Death Weapon Meister Academy. Keyla told me she was over him, and that if she ever saw him again, she'd kick the crap out of him. That was back when we were 12. That was almost 6 years ago. I'd long forgotten my grudge against him, but she still apparently was holding on to some.

"Why do you keep calling him Evans anyway?" Blackstar asked, hands held behind his head.

"Because that's his last name?" she said like it was obvious, which to her, I'm guessing it was.

"But Soul always told us his name was Eater."

Keyla looked at Soul as he stood back up, and laughed. "Wow. I can't believe you actually went and did it! I mean, I heard rumors after you left, but I never actually thought you were going to go through with it. I remember you always telling me you didn't think your last name did you justice because it wasn't cool, but seriously? Anything to make yourself look cool, right?" she smirked as he grimaced.

Soul simply snorted before putting his hands into hip jacket pockets. "Whatever. I don't need to make myself look cool. I'm already cool. Everybody knows it. And," he smirked back at her causing her's to fall, "if I remember correctly, it's the same thing that drew you to me before."

"Why you son of a –"

"Keyla!" I said, grabbing her arm, and pulling her aside. "We talked about this before we came here, remember? You promised that you wouldn't let this old bad blood with him get in the way of you becoming stronger. You told your parents, and me, that you were over him, and didn't care anymore. What happened to all that?"

"I'm sorry Code," she sighed, folding her arms. "I am over him, but…that arrogant attitude of his is enough to make me want to kick his ass from here to Antarctica and back. Every time I look at him, I get this really annoying nudge in the back of my mind telling me to beat the crap out of him; to make him pay for breaking my heart and I really just want to give into the impulse."

"Keyla, this isn't like you at all. What happened to the sweet little glasses wearing dork I used to push in the pool and would throw ice water in my face while I slept? You've always been in control of your anger. Don't let this situation change that," I said, holding her chin so she was looking me right in the eye.

Looking back at me, she sighed again and smiled. "You're right. I'm sorry. I'll try harder. And for the record, that little girl is still in here. She's just having a hard time battling growing up, being a weapon, hormones, and being responsible for both of us."

"Of real funny, " I rolled my eyes, but smiled. We walked back over to the group just in time to hear the girls talking.

"That sounds like a fun Idea," Tsubaki said to Liz.

"What does?" I asked.

"We were planning on having a girl's night out after school. We were going to do some shopping, hit the spa, and maybe going out for a little clubbing, and we were going to invite Keyla," Liz said with extra enthusiasm.

"What? Me?" Keyla said, confused.

I rolled my eyes. "No, the other Keyla, you know, the one who can actually remember who she is when someone invited her to hang out with them," I said, getting a glare sent at me. "She'd love to girl," which got me a confused look from her as her mouth hung open. "And before you start complaining about me making decisions without asking you, as your meister, I command you to go out and have a good time."

"Are you sure?" she whispered, looking at me with her little girl face to be sure I was ok with it. She always did this when she wanted something. She would come up to me all causally, wrap her arms around me, snuggle her head into my chest, and then look right up at me with the sad little girl eyes and slight pout. I could never say no to her when she did that.

"Yea, I'm sure. Go, have fun, buy yourself something nice, do some dancing, pamper yourself. Clear your head…" I whispered before hugging her. "You deserve it."

"Ok. I'm in!" she said, earning a cheer from Patty and Liz, and smiles from Maka.

"Well since they're having a girls night, I say we have a guys night," Soul said turning to Kid, Blackstar and me. "What do you guys say?"

"Sound great to me!" Blackstar cheered. "We can order some pizza, play some video games. It'll be great."

"Sound like a pretty good idea. I'm in," I said, grinning.

"Why not. It's been a while since we actually had a guys night. We can have it at my place," Kid said.

"Sweet. Code, I'll grab Blackstar and we'll meet at your place and head to Kid's after that. Sound cool?"

"Yea, sure. You guys want me to bring anything?"

"Nope. Since Kid's gonna provide the entertainment, and Blackstar's bringing the drinks, I'll bring the music, and you just come to have a good time. Think of this as our way to welcome you to the group," he said, holding his hand up for a high five.

I grinned even harder, and slapped my hand against his. "Thanks guys."

As luck would have it, the bell rang, signaling we were all late to our next class, which, ironically, we were all standing outside of.

"Crap!" Soul said, causing all of us to run inside. Unfortunately, our professor was already there, though he seemed to be distracted by some guy in a black suit and red hair. We all tiptoed quietly, even Blackstar, which was a surprise.

"Yea, so all of us are going out for drinks after the conference."

"Alright Spirit. That sounds pretty good," Professor Stein said, not paying us any attention. "By the way, Maka, Soul, Blackstar, Tsubaki, Kid, Liz, Patty, Code and Keyla, you'll all have extra homework, due next week for being late."

"Agh!" we all groaned, not bothering to sneak around anymore and head straight for our seats. Apparently or late arrival sparked the interest of our teachers visitor who turned to look us all over.

"My MAKA!" he cheered, waving to her, I turned to Maka who was now bright red with anger. She quickly snuffed him, turning her head away. He seemed to take this pretty hard as he dropped his head, and shuffled out the room. This all seemed to get a rise out of the clas as everyone started to laugh. Everyone except Make, Kelya and I. I was confused but before I could asked what was so funny, Professor Stein took control.

"Alright everyone, settle down. We have a lot of work to do, and the longer it takes, the more homework you're all gonna have tonight." And with that, the class fell silent.

As soon as class was over, we were all called down to receive our extra homework from Stein.

"Professor Stein, I'm really sorry about us all being late. We were showing Code and Keyla around, and-"

"Save it, Maka," he said, turning the screw in his head. In the corner of my eye I saw Key cringe slightly. "I was going to give you all this assignment anyway. You'll just have less time to do it," he said with a smile.

"So, what you got in store, Prof?" I asked.

"Well, as I'm sure you've been informed; each team is paired with another 2 teams as a way to help support each other in battle as well to bring our student closer together. Unfortunately, we currently have no openings for new team members in the class."

"So…we don't get a group of team mates then? We're on our own?" Key asked.

"Well, normally in a situation such as this one, we would pair you up with some students from the younger class, but at the moment they are far too inexperienced and I'm sure you two would rather not have to babysit your team mates," he smirked.

"Well that sucks for them, but what does that have to do with us? You said we were all getting extra homework for being late, so let's just get on with it. A big guy like me has a lot of stuff to do that doesn't involve standing her all day," Blackstar complained.

"I'm getting to that, Blackstar. Now, as a result of this little predicament, Lord Death has approved a special formation team of some of our best students, and I am to assemble them."

"So…that means, what exactly?"

"It means that Lord Death is allowing Code and Keyla to join an already formed team of 3 to make a team of 4, and Professor Stein picked our team o be the team they join," Maka said, irritation clear in her voice.

"Exactly. You shall be the only team of 4, meaning your team work will need to practiced even more so. That being said, you extra assignment is that you must all learn how to Soul Link with two extra people. You have exactly one week to perfect it, to my standards," he said, a sick smile on his face.

"Crap," I heard Soul grumble.

"But, Professor Stein," Maka started, "Soul Link is hard enough with just the 7 of us. Adding 2 others…that's never been heard of except-"

"When your father and mother were students here. In fact, they completed it in 3 weeks."

"Well then, why in the hell do we only have a week to do it?" Soul complained.

"Well, originally I was going to give you guy 2, but seeing as you were late to my class, you now only have a week to complete the assignment. Have fun." He said, waving us off.

We all walked out of the room, various members of our new "team" complaining and griping about the new assignment. I caught a glimpse at Keyla, and could tell she was thinking the same thing.

"Listen, guys," Key said, getting their attention, "We're really sorry about this. We didn't know that we'd get you stuck on extra homework and newbie training duty. I promise, we'll work as hard as possible and try not to cause too much of a problem."

"Oh, don't trouble yourselves," Tsubaki said, a caring smile on her face.

"Yeah. You guys are part of our team, and you're our new friends, and we always look after each other," Liz said, giving us a thumbs up as Patty smiled and nodded her head. Kid smiled and nodded his head while Blackstar smiled widely. Maka smiled and nodded her head while Soul grinned from ear to ear.

I smiled at Key who smiled back before politely bowing. "Thank you guys so much."

"It's no problem. But before we split off into our separate groups for our the rest of the day, there's something that I've been curious about," Kid said, looking at us seriously. "What type of weapon meister team are you?"

I smiled. I always loved telling people about this. "I'm a demon chain whip," Keyla said, grinning at her.

"And I'm a demon chain with meister," I said.

"A Demon chain whip? What's that?" Patty asked.

"The chain whip is a very complicated weapon to master. It's formed by numerous small bladed links that brought together and at the very end is a long sharp blade that can be used to penetrate through most anything if given enough force," Kid explained.

"Well, someone knows a lot about weapons, I see," Keyla said. I had to admit, I was impressed with his knowledge as well.

"So what make it such a difficult weapon to use?" Liz asked.

"Most people who use a chain whip just try to crack it or swing it and try to stab their opponent. Also, because it moves so wildly, someone who is inexperienced has the high possibility of hitting themselves as well. To be a true expert, you must be able to not only control the wild nature and flow of the chain, but also be able to use it to defend yourself. I've even heard that some people are able to wrap the chain around themselves without getting hurt. I imagine you must be very skilled to be able to use a weapon such as this."

"Yes. I am," I said with a grin. "And there's also something that make's Key special from other chain whips, though, you guys will have to find out for yourselves when we start practicing."

"Yeah, cuz right now, we need to hit the mall, and get out girls not started!" Liz cheered.

"And I believe we have a date with some video games and pizza," Soul grinned.

"Alright, then let's get going," Keyla said, turning to me and waving before our two groups went out spate ways, a full night of fun a head for us all.


	3. Chapter 3: Night Out Part 1: Guys

Night Out Part 1: Guys

"No way! How could I, the great Blackstar, lose!" Blackstar shouted, nearly knocking over the table in front of him.

"Watch the table you idiot!" Kid shouted, face redden from the numerous drinks he consumed.

"Yeah, seriously. Besides, you already know that you suck at racing games. You can't just button mash like you do when you start losing in a fighting game," Soul grinned.

"That, and I rule at racing. If there's one thing I like to do, it's race," I smiled before taking a sip from my mixed drink. I was finally starting to feel the effects of the rum, and we had been drinking for a good 3 hours. Most would say that I have a high tolerance for alcohol. Truth is, I drink a lot more often than Keyla knows, and if she knew that, she would kill me, so keep quiet.

"And what the hell are you gonna do if I broke your stupid table, huh Kid?" Blackstar grinned. By the look on his face, it was hard to tell if that was the alcohol talking or if he was just being an idiot. Maybe both.

"I'll kick your ass 8 ways from Sunday, you blue haired moron!" Kid shouted, standing to his feet. "Don't forget, I'm a reaper, damnit!" He shuffled over to Blackstar, moving slowly so as not to lose his balance. "I'm a master of life and death!"

"Well from what Liz has told me, she's your master when it comes to dominance in bed," Blackstar said, grinning as the color drained from Kid's face, making it even paler than usual.

"I-it's not...it's not like that!"

"Yo, that was a low blow Blackstar," I said.

"Yeah, seriously dude. This is what we mean about you being a sore loser. You can never lose gracefully, you always gotta bring other people down with you," Soul said, shaking his head before finishing off his sixth beer. "No wonder Tsubaki's always apologizing for you."

"Shut it, Soul," he grumbled, clearly ticked off. "I can say whatever I want."

"Yeah, you can, but soon as someone start talking about Tsubaki…" Soul grinned.

"I said, shut it!" Blackstar said, looking away. "You know I don't like talking about it."

"Bout what?" I asked, clearly out of the loop.

"Blackstar is a bit of a crush, so to say, on Tsubaki, but is too afraid to admit it," Kid smirked, bouncing back from his humiliation. "The great Blackstar, scared of his own feeling for his weapon. Funny how you claim to be so big, and yet can't build up the courage to ask her out, even once."

"Shut up! I get it! I'm an asshole, and a chicken. You don't have to rub it in!"

"Alright, enough ripping on each other bout girls. Let's play a game," Soul said.

"What'd you have in mind?" I asked.

"How bout, Never have I ever?" He grinned.

"Don't think I've played that one," Blackstar said, sitting back at his spot.

"It's easy. We go around, one person at a time, and whoever's turn it is, they say 'Never have I ever…' and then you say something, whether you did it or not, and if anyone has done it, they have to take a drink."

"It's an easy way to get drunk, and to get people to spill their guts," I said.

"I'm in!" Blackstar shouted, slamming his fist on the table for added effect.

"I guess I might as well. Not like there's much else to do," Kid said, refilling his cup with more vodka.

"Alright, I'll start," Soul said, eyeing each of us. "Never have I ever…wore the color pink."

At that, we each had to take a drink, which didn't surprise any of us. Living with women could be a real pain.

"I'm next. Never have I ever blacked out from drinking." I watched each of them, only to see that no one picked up their drinks. "Wow. I would have thought with the liquor supply you guys have and how often you do drink, that one of you guy would have."

"Naw. We know how to handle ourselves. Now, never have I ever, smacked a girl on the butt," Blackstar grinned. I shrugged my shoulders and took a quick drink, as did Soul.

"Never have I ever put a hole in the wall by kicking it," Kid said, picking up his drink. I turned my head and saw Blackstar do the same.

"Alright, time to really get this game goin. Never have I ever purposely opened the door while my partner was showering or getting dressed." I grinned as we all were forced to drink. And for all those who are judging us, we're guys. It's what we do.

"Blackstar should have to drink a whole bottle for how many times he's done that to Tsubaki," Kid said, causing all of us to laugh.

"Alright, never have I ever hidden a porno mag from my partner," I grinned. Both Soul and Blackstar took a drink, while Kid, who had his hand on his drink, looked away nervously. "Well, Kid? You've got your hand on your drink. Does that mean…"

"I-it w-was a moment of weakness. I bought it out of curiosity, and had to hide it fro Liz and Patty," he rushed out, drinking so we could continue.

"No way! Never knew you had it in ya!" Blackstar said, slapping him on the back.

"Yes, well, let's just get on with it."

"Alright," Blackstar paused to think before a smile crept onto his face. "Never have I ever slept in the same bed as my partner." He grabbed his cup, taking a drink which was quickly followed by the rest of us. "No way! There's no way Maka would let you sleep in her bed, Soul!" he said, pointing an accusing finger at him.

"We weren't in her bed. We were on a mission, and the hotel room only had one bed, so we agreed to share it. Nothing special."

"Never have I ever stolen money," Kid said. His eyes bulged out of his sockets when all three of us took a drink, "Ok, one at a time, from who, when, and why?"

"My parents, I was 12, and because I wanted to buy a video game. They didn't really care, though my brother took the game from me for like 2 weeks, trying to 'teach me a lesson'. Ironically, he learned not to do that again cuz I took money from him later," Soul said with a grin.

"I see. Code?"

"Um…well…you can't tell her, but I stole, like, ten bucks from Keyla once so I could make a bet on a basketball game. I figured, if I won, I could put it back, and she'd never notice. Turns out, not only did I lose the bet, but she found out the money was gone. I argued with her for bout 2 hours before she finally gave up and accepted that she spent it and just didn't remember. She ever finds out, I'm as good as dead."

"My, that does seem bad. Blackstar?"

"From you, like, last week," he said nonchalantly as he dug inside his ear.

"What!"

"Yeah, you left your wallet on the table, and I took like five bucks. Oh, and you library card."

"Why would you take my library card?"

"Cuz all the good joke books and manga are level three and up," he grinned.

"Ugh, just bring it back."

"Alright, never have I ever kissed a random girl I've met," Soul said. I turned my head down a little before grabbing my cup and drinking some. "No way. Code? Seriously?"

"Yeah. I went out with a couple of guys from my old soccer team, and one was trying so damn hard to get laid, and was hitting on this girl, and she said she'd rather kiss every guy on the team before she would even consider him. Him having a loud mouth, he dared her to prove it. I wasn't there for this, but as soon as I walked over, she threw herself on me, and started making out with me. I don't know if it was her looks, or the alcohol, but I started getting into it before she pulled away. Definitely not one of my proudest moments."

"What'd you team mate say?" Soul asked.

"He laughed and said that I looked like a deer in a pair of headlights before I started getting into it. Anyway, never have I ever gotten a boner in class, while, thinking about my partner," I smiled. Both Blackstar and Kid picked up their drinks, but only Blackstar was looking nervous. "Explain guys."

"Liz is my girlfriend. That's all I have to say."

"Fair enough. Blackstar?"

"Well…I mean…yea, I've thought about her. Especially after I've got caught spyin on her. What can I say, she's hot!" he said before laughing loudly. "Now, it's my turn," he grinned to me. "Never have I ever kissed my partner."

I grinned before picking up my drink and finishing it, before pouring more into my cup. "I'm gonna need a bigger cup then this for that one if I'm gonna count all the times I've kissed her."

"No way. You've kissed Keyla?" Soul asked, putting down his drink.

"Whoa, wait a minute. Before we get to him, did you just take a drink!"

Soul held his head down a little but kept his eyes on Blackstar. "Yea, what of it?"

"No way! I never thought I'd see the day! Did you fuck her!"

"Dude!" I said, smacking him upside the head.

"That is so uncool, Blackstar. I'm not even dating Maka, so why in the hell would I be sleeping with her?"

"Well then why did you kiss her? And when?"

"I don't know, it was a few years ago. She was really sick in the hospital, and I was worried about her. I was watching her sleep, and…I don't know, just kinda…leaned in and kissed her. I don't think she knows it happened. She never said anything."

"Dude, that is so…lame! You are such a wuss!" Blackstar cackled.

"Ugh, this is so uncool," Soul grumbled.

"Well, at least you've kissed a girl," I said with a smirk. "I didn't see Blackstar pick up his cup."

Blackstar instantly stopped laughing, and looked at the ground. I could see in his eyes that he was extremely embarrassed about this fact.

"Exactly."

"Well, what about you? Why were you kissing Keyla, and why did you say you would need a bigger cup to count them all," Soul asked, taking a gulp from his cup.

"Because she's my girlfriend, and I kiss her everyday," I said. In an instant, Soul spit coke and rum from his mouth, coughing a little at the end.

"What! No way. You guys are going out?"

"Yep."

"But you guys don't act like it, at all," Kid said.

"Yea, she gets a little nervous about people knowing we're dating because she afraid of having a repeat of the last time she broke up with a boyfriend."

"Yea, sorry bout that. That was seriously uncool of me," Soul said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"No worries bro. It's in the past. Besides, you're not half as much of an asshole as I originally thought," I grinned, holding my fist out to him. He grinned back before bumping his with mine.

"Thanks. To tell you the truth, the reason I broke up with her is because it was the same time I figured out I was a weapon. I was sick of my parents pushing me to be like my brother and treating me like I wasn't good enough to be part of the family if I didn't. Wes was the only person who told me to be whoever the hell I wanted to be. Once I figured out I was a weapon, I knew it was my chance to get away and figure out who I was. But I didn't want to leave any loose ends back at home because I never knew if I was going to come back, so I broke up with Keyla, but I couldn't tell her it was because I was a weapon. I couldn't tell anyone that cause I was pretty sure that would cause a panic, and death only knows what would happen after that."

"I understand bro. When Keyla found out she was a weapon, she damn near cut my dreads off. Freaked the crap out of me. Took me months to let her anywhere near my head again."

"Alright, alright, enough. Kid?" Blackstar said, eyeing our friend who's eyes were glazed over before a big smile crept onto his face.

"Never have I ever taken a girl's virginity!" he said, looking directly at me. For a moment, everyone stared at me. I swallowed hard before picking up my drink, and drinking from it.

"No way! You and Keyla…" Blackstar said. I simply nodded my head, not sure if I could trust myself with answering.

"When?" Kid asked.

"When we were sixteen. Well, I was sixteen, anyway. It had been bout a year since we started actually dating, and she said she had a special gift for my birthday. She said it was not only because it was my birthday and because I was her boyfriend, but also because I'd been a good friend to her since we met."

"So how did you guys meet, exactly?" Soul asked.

I smiled at the memory. "Well, it all started when I tried drown her…"

To be continued.


	4. Chapter 4: Night Out Part 2: Girls

Night Out Part 2: Girls

"It all started when he tried to drown me," Keyla said as she continued to paint Liz's toenails. Maka, in her shock, swallowed her drink wrong, causing her to choke and cough. Tsubaki quickly ran over to her distressed friend and patted her back in an attempt to clear her airways while Liz and Patti stared at Keyla with a look of confusion at her statement. Keyla looked up to see everyone looking at her strangely, though she was confused as to why. "What?"

"He…tried to drown you…and you're still friends with him?" Liz asked slowly to be sure she had heard correctly.

"Yeah, that's what I said, and yeah, we are still friends."

"Ok, we are gonna need some serious information here because that doesn't sound right," she said, shaking her head and taking a drink from her wine cooler.

"Well, it's not like he did it recently. And to be honest, it was kinda my fault," she said with a laugh as she readjusted her pajama shirt after putting the nail polish down. "It happened when we were like five years old. You see, our parents used to be students here at the academy. His dad and my dad were partners and used to cause a lot of trouble. They apparently had gotten the most detentions for their class."

"Oh my. They must have been very troublesome," Tsubaki said.

"No, they were just idiots. Still are," she said, causing everyone to laugh. "Though I can see where Code gets it. Meta is just as crazy and just as lazy."

"Wait, did you just say Meta? As in Meta Phase, the greatest mace meister in all of DWMA history?" Maka asked in astonishment. "That's Code's father?"

"The very same. He taught Code everything he knows about wielding chain style weapons like me since my Dad was a chained weapon as well."

"So that means that you're the daughter of Mace Marks, right?" Tsubaki asked to which Keyla nodded her head.

"Mace and Maria Marks, the two most embarrassing parents a kid could ever have. Or, that's what my younger brother and sister say. But yes, those are my parents. Ironically, Code's mom and my mom were partners here too, and used to tell us stories about how our dad's used to get in trouble and used to hit on them all the time because they were on the same team. They used to get annoyed by them, but I guess one day they just wore them down," she said with a smile on her face.

"So what kinda weapon is your mom?" Patti asked, leaning in close as she hung off of every word.

"She's a double bladed staff."

"So your weapon form is a combination between the two of theirs," Maka said in interest as she thought how Keyla and Code had described her form. "That's interesting because of how rare it is that the child of two weapons would become a mixed combination between the two. It's usually one or the other depending on which trait is the more dominant of the weapons."

"Yeah yeah, enough technical stuff. We'll get to her weapon form later but for now, can we get back to the real story," Liz said, giving Maka a pointed look. Maka glared back at her but said nothing.

"Oh right, the real story. Ok, so our parents had been friends for a long time, but hadn't seen each other in years, and had decided to have a little get together for old time's sake. It was at this gathering that Code and I met.

_Keyla stared at the boy in front of her with curiosity. He had short hair that was twisted in to cornrowed braids and bright blue eyes that stared back at her emerald green ones, the same curiosity dancing in his eyes. She vaguely remembered her mother telling her that her and her daddy's best friends from when they were in school were coming to visit them and that they were bringing a new friend for Keyla. When she had heard this, the first thing she thought about was a puppy or a pony because every girl wanted to have her own pony. Seeing that the person they were talking about was this boy, she was not happy with it at all. The boy smiled a toothy grin at her and held out his hand to her._

"_Hi! My name's Code! You're really pretty!" he said, still smiling at her. Keyla only felt more annoyed with the way this boy spoke. He seemed really annoying, and she didn't like annoying things or people._

"_I don't like you," she said with a pout on her face. The smile fell from the boys face as he looked at her and his hand went back to his side. "Boys are icky and stupid I don't play with boys. You're a stupid head!" Keyla stuck her tongue out at the boy to emphasize her point and turned to walk away, but soon felt a pressure on her back and a falling sensation as she tipped sideways and felt the sudden rush of water as she broke through the surface and began to sink._

_Panic began to take over her as she struggled to kick her feet and move her arms, but found her struggling to be useless as she only continued to sink. As she looked around, she soon saw a familiar pair of strong arms as they reached out to her and wrapped around her. Water rushed past her before her head came up and she could breathe once again. Keyla began to cough roughly as water exited her lungs and tears began to pour down her face from the scary experience. Clinging onto her father for dear life, Keyla shook as she looked at all the people who were panicking sigh with relief. As she looked, she quickly caught the eyes of the boy she had been talking to before. His glare scared her as he looked at her wet form in her father's arms and tears ran down his face. Before she realized, the boy was being pulled away by his arm via his mother who looked very angry as they walked away from the crowd. Keyla could faintly hear the sounds of yelling and crying as the boy was reprimanded. The boy's father came over to her and her father, apologizing for his actions._

"_I'm really sorry, Mace. I don't know what's gotten into that boy," the man said._

"_It's alright, Meta. I know they were just playing and I'm sure he didn't mean it," her father said, cradling her. _

"_He's a stupid face!" Keyla suddenly yelled, still looking at the boy. _

"_Keyla, that's not very nice."_

"_It's also the reason why he pushed her into the water in the first place," her mother said as she walked over to them and handed her father a towel that he wrapped around her small frame to dry and warm her. "I was watching them, and Code was being so sweet. He had the biggest smile on his face and was holding out his hand to her, but Keyla apparently doesn't like him and decided it was better to tell him that and call him names right to his face. My guess would be that his feelings were hurt and he reacted by pushing her into the water."_

"_Oh, lord. Meta, I think I'm the one who should be apologizing. Apparently we're going to have to teach Keyla how to treat people," Mace said, a small grin on his face._

"_Now, Code, what do you have to say?" Turning, everyone looked to see Kara, Meta's wife and Code's mother, give the boy a small push forward toward them all. _

"_I'm sorry I pushed you into the water, Keyla," he said, tears still staining his face and gaze to the ground. _

"_Thank you, Code. Keyla, what do you say?" her mother said. Keyla looked at the boy with a look of hate and stuck her tongue out at him before turning away and pouting. All of the adults sighed, a feeling of exhaustion taking them all over. "Well, that could have gone better."_

"You called him stupid when he was trying to be nice, and then he pushed you into the pool?" Liz asked, a fit of laughter taking over her.

"That seems like a bit of an over-reaction," Tsubaki said though she had a smile on her face.

"I can't really blame him. I guess I really hurt his feelings, though I was too stubborn to notice it at the time," she said with a shake of her head. "That was the last time we saw each other until we were about nine. Our families decided to go on a vacation together. Of course the blood was still pretty bad between us because as soon as he climbed out of his family's car, I glared at him. Code just stood there, staring at me with this emotionless face and for some reason it just pissed me off even more that he wasn't even going to acknowledge how much I hated him. I swear he was only trying to get under my skin because he greeted both of my parents and my little brother and sister with a smile. It seriously pissed me off, and when we were alone, I asked him what his problem was."

"What'd he say?" Patti asked.

"He said "I don't waste my time on bratty little girls who think they're queen bitch". His EXACT words," she said with a laugh. "I don't know what I was more shocked at: the fact that a nine year old was smart enough to know how to swear like that or the fact that he did it with such a calm demeanor that I wasn't even sure it had really happened. Things didn't really get better after that. We pretty much ignored each other until one night when our parents sent us to the store down the street to get food. We didn't say anything to each other and it stayed that way until-"Keyla paused, eyes growing wide as she realized she had begun to ramble. The other four girls gazed at her in confusion at her sudden pause in speech while Keyla was mentally kicking herself.

That was a topic that they weren't supposed to just start telling people, regardless of how nice they were. In fact, they weren't supposed to let that information out until they had a better handle on what they were going to do about it. Sure, everyone had been really nice to them so far, and they were going to be teammates with them, but now was not the right time to tell them. No, that time would come eventually, but until then, she had to keep it a secret.

"Keyla? Are you alright?" Tsubaki asked, placing a hand on her shoulder. Keyla looked up at her with a sad look before she nodded her head.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just…reminiscing," she said quietly.

"So, what happened? How did you guys end up talking with each other?" Maka asked. Keyla sighed, lolling her head back and looking at the ceiling as she deviled back into the memory.

_The two nine year olds walked silently down the dark street, the only light coming from the over head street lights and a few headlights of cars that passed by. Keyla could feel the nervousness bubbling in the pit of her stomach as she walked beside a boy that hated her as much as she hated him. The two were making their way back to the hotel, and had yet to say a word to each other, and it didn't look like they were going to, which was fine with her. He was a jerk anyway. The sounds of their flip flops slapping against the pavement was brought to a stop as Code stuck his hand out to stop her, nearly knocking her over which did not sit well with her as she glared at him. _

"_What?" She asked, vemon lacing her words. _

"_Did you feel that?" he asked quietly, eyes scanning the area around them. Keyla rolled her eyes, looking down the open alleyway near them. _

"_Feel what, you psycho?" Code could tell that she was clearly not in the mood to talk to him. Though, when was she ever in the mood to? _

"_There's something following us. Or someone. I can feel it."_

"_Oh very funny. Try to scare me so you can laugh about it later. Well it's not going to work so don't bother. I'm not in the mood for some stupid prank. It's dark and I wanna go home," Keyla said, stepping around his arm. Code reached out and grabbed her just as a tentacle whipped out and lashed at the ground when she had been standing a moment ago. Keyla's mouth gaped open like a fish as she turned to see a creature with long, vines coming from its green body begin to stalk toward them from across the street. _

_His eyes glowed an ominous red as he licked his lips, bypassing his large, sharp teeth. As Code looked upon the creature in fright, his face paling a little, he was quickly reminded of a Venus fly trap that his class kept as a pet, except on a much larger, scarier scale. _

"_What is that thing!?" Keyla screamed, hiding behind Code as they stepped away from the approaching monster._

"_I think my Mom and Dad used to tell me about these things. I think they're called kishins," Code said, his gaze never leaving the monster._

"_You mean the soul eating things that they used to fight when they were teenagers!?" she said, pure terror running through her as tears fell from her face. "I don't want to die!"_

"_Then stop screaming and run!" He yelled, grabbing her hand and running, their bags of snacks easily forgotten. As Code pull her along, he was suddenly jerked back as he watched in horror as the girl was pulled into the alleyway. "Keyla!" he shouted. Code looked around, beginning to weigh his options. He was only a few blocks from the hotel, he could get their parents. But if he did that, it might be too late. He could stay and try to fight it off, but as far as he knew, he wasn't a weapon type, and there for could not transform. 'Even if I was, I've got no training! I'd be walking into my own death!' Turning, he began to run when Keyla's terror filled scream reached his ears. Before he could even understand what he was doing, Code was in the opening of the alleyway, staring as the monster held Keyla against the wall, preparing to devour her. _

_He met her eyes as she screamed in terror and began to look for a weapon he could use when he came across a discarded trash can lid. Grabbing it, he quickly tossed it like a Frisbee, watching as it bounced off the skull of the green soul devourer. Code could feel the adrenaline pumping into his veins as his pride swelled. Maybe he could do this! Maybe he could save her. The kishin, however, was not as excited about the boy hitting him, and turned around, whipping out another tentacle at him. Code quickly pulled a lid off the can next to him, using it as a makeshift shield to block the attack, but the force was too much and knocked him over. Taking advantage of his defenselessness, the kishin wrapped another tentacle around his ankle, dragging the boy over and throwing him at the girl._

_The two children collided, landing in a heap against the wall. Code groaned as he moved off of Keyla but soon a stream of felt panic as she remained unmoving, though he had little time to ponder what was wrong as the creature began trying to whip at him again. Picking up his can lid, Code began to block as many attacks as he could, standing in front of the unconscious girl's form, but was no match for the furiousness of the attacks, and began to take many hits. Some hit him in the side, some went for his legs, but the ones that stung the most were the ones that hit him in the head or the face. _

_As a small trail of blood trailed down his face, Code could feel his panic start to grow in size as the adrenaline he had felt earlier was beginning to fade. Code could feel the various bruises and scratched that he had obtained, a few bleeding and staining his white shirt, yet he refused to move from his spot. Just when he thought it wasn't going to get any worse, a tentacle came up from under him and wrapped around his throat, cutting off his air before slamming him into the wall behind him. Code's grip loosened at that moment, and his only weapon fell to the ground with a loud clank. _

_Code struggled to breathe and to get his body to move, but his arms and legs remained hanging limp at his sides, and it was at the moment that he truly thought he was going to die. He had failed. His father had told him that it was his job to watch out for Keyla and to make sure she was safe when they went to the store. And here he was, hanging on the wall, suffocating and about to be eaten by a monster. 'I'm sorry Dad. I guess I can't ever be as good as you and Mom.'_

"_Feed," the kishin said as it looked at the two children in its grasp. Code was sure he was about to be swallowed whole, when he watch a tentacle snake across the ground and wrap around Keyla's waist, bringing her up to the monster's eye level. Code's eyes widen in horror as she was brought closer to its mouth, almost touching its teeth. _

"_No!" he croaked out as best as he could, fury suddenly taking full control of his vision. A wave of energy began to flood his now boiling blood as his arms suddenly grabbed onto the vine holding him and pulled at it. "NO!" He yelled more clearly. "Leave her alone!" he screeched._

_The monster turned, perplexed as the boy's body was suddenly surrounded by a bright blue light. The boy was screaming at the monster, but it paid no attention as he could only focus on the delicious scent of the boy's soul as it expanded. It once again dropped the girl, planning to save her for later and reached out to the boy, when a blinding light exploded from the boy's body, and a layer of ice ran up his vine like arm. The monster roared in anger and pain, causing him to drop the boy who landed on his feet, head held down as his short dreadlocks casted a dark shadow over his eyes. The monster lashed out at the boy, only to see the boy had disappeared in an instant._

_The boy came down so fast, the kishin didn't even see him until he felt the powerful kick to the side of his face, sending him into the wall. With a graceful flip, the boy landed, head still hanging as if he were staring at the ground. The kishin peeled itself out of the wall and roared as he lashed out at the boy, narrowly missing his head. The boy vanished once more, running up the wall with something in his arms. Landing on the sidewalk, Code laid Keyla on the ground tenderly, haunting bright blue completely consuming his eyes, pupils, whites and all._

"_Must protect…" he mumbled quietly. The kishin roared at the boy who turned, eyes finally casted up at the creature. "Must…destroy." _

_Unbeknownst to him, the girl began to stir and looked up to see him standing over her in a protective stance as the creature roared at them. Fear began to run through her all over again before a cold sensation flew over her. Looking up, she stared, wide eyed as the boy she hated seemed to be glowing a slight blue color._

_The calm look on the boy's face changed to one of fury once more as he jumped up, running along the wall around the creature's attacks as they smashed into the bricks. Pushing himself off the wall, the boy threw a glowing blue fist into the monster's stomach, making it scream. A battle cry ripped from the boy's throat as he threw another and another in rapid succession, crippling the creature. As it raised an arm to attack, the boy roared again, thrusting his hand into the creature's chest, breaking it's ribcage and grasping it's heart in his hands. _

_Both cried out, one in pain, the other in rage. As the energy poured from his body to his arms and into the creature's chest, the boy yelled out, "I will protect them all!"_

_It all happened in an instant. The explosion of energy engulfed the ruined alley, causing an uproar of arctic cold air to sweep pass the girl who was almost thrown back by the pure power contained in blast. Covering her eyes in an attempt to keep the battle in site, Keyla called out to the boy. _

"_CODE!" but her voice as drowned out._

_As the wind settled and the light began to die out, Keyla was stunned as to see Code, eyes still ablaze with blue energy as he stood beside a glowing red orb. Opening her mouth to speak, Keyla could feel her vocal cords tighten and her body shake with fright as he stared at her._

"_Must protect…Keyla…" he said, voice hallow and ominous as it echoed. "Secret…promise…" As he raised his hand, Code's legs gave out, bringing him to his knees before he fell to the ground and lost consciousness. _

"_Code!" Getting to her feet, Keyla ignored the various pains she felt over her body, and knelt beside her savior. "Wake up, please," she begged, eyes dripping as tears fell onto him. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry for everything and how I treated you! Just, please, don't die! Code, don't die!"_

As Keyla came back into reality, she looked at the three weapons and the single meister.

"After I was knocked unconscious, I came too to find that Code had passed out too, and looked like he's just been in a fight with a pack of rabid dogs with a kishin egg floating next to him. I ran over to him and kept trying to wake him up because I thought for sure he was dead. Not long after our parents showed up and were relieved to see that we were alive. When our parents saw him on the ground, out cold with a kishin egg next to him, they rushed us to the hospital. I feel asleep on the way there.

"I came to a few hours later, and the doctor told me that I should be fine and that I only had a few scraps here and there. When our parents asked me what happened, I explained that we were attacked on the way home, and that I only remembered being knocked out until I woke up and didn't know what happened to the kishin besides it obviously being destroyed. They went to sign some release forms, and as the door shut, Code spoke up."

_Keyla leaned back into her pillow, not sure why, but feeling like she had done the right thing. She hadn't told them the complete truth. She hadn't told them about how Code had been acting or the glowing or how he was the one who destroyed the kishin. But why hadn't she? 'Could it have something to do with what he said before he passed out?'_

"_Keyla…" _

_Surprised, Keyla nearly fell out of her bed as she turned to see the boy in question, wrapped and bandaged, looking at her with his normal deep blue eyes. _

"_Code…" she whispered before feeling the tears coming to her face. Hopping out of her bed, she ran over to his side and hugged him, burying her face in his neck. "Oh, Code, I'm-so-sorry-you got hurt-because of me," she cried._

"_Thank god you're safe," he said, wincing at the pain. "When he had me pinned against the walk, and he had you…I thought you were gonna die…I thought…I had lost and that I was gonna lose a friend," he whispered as tears trailed down his face too. _

_Keyla looked up at him, tear streaks staining her face with the shocked look that she had. "Lose…a friend?"_

_Code nodded. "I've never hated you, Keyla. I was just acting that way because I thought you didn't want to be my friend. But I never wanted you to get hurt."_

"_Is…that why you protected me from the monster?"_

"_Yeah. But…I thought I had failed because when the monster had me against the wall…I was too weak to get away. It had beaten me so badly, I couldn't move. I was so scared that you were gonna die…" he continued to cry. "And to wake up and see that you're safe…"_

"_But Code, you saved me. You saved us. We wouldn't have survived if it wasn't for you," she said, as her hand came up and grasped his, being careful of the I.V. "And I'm sorry for making you feel like I didn't want to be your friend. From now on, we're going to be friends. And not just friends, best friends. Ok?"_

_Code looked up at her, and, seeing the sincerity in her face, he smiled too, and nodded. "And I promise to protect you from everything that tries to hurt you. I'll grow up and get bigger and make sure nothing and no one ever hurts you again." Keyla had a sudden flashback as she remembered the hallowness of his voice as it echoed in her mind. _

'_Secret. He said secret.' Looking at the smiling boy, Keyla began to wonder if he didn't remember anything that happened last night. 'He said he thought I was gonna die and that he only remembers waking up here…me must not remember killing the monster. That must be what he meant last night…his power…it's a secret. And he wanted me to make a promise to keep it.'_

_Smiling down at her new friend, Keyla could only smile and nod her head as his secret that was foreign to even him, became hers to protect. _

As tears rolled down her face and her body shook with sobs, Keyla could feel the other girls embrace her, holding her tight in an attempt to comfort her.

"It's ok, Keyla. Everything's ok now," Tsubaki said in a soft tone.

"You know, I still find it ironic that he's the one who promised to always protect me, and I end up being the weapon," she said with a small laugh as her tears started to slow. "But he kept his promise. Every time I needed someone, he was there for me. And I never appreciated him more then when I got my heartbroken and he literally begged his parents to let him come stay with my family just so that he could keep his promise and protect me from myself."

"From yourself?" Liz asked, a bad feeling bubbling up inside her chest. Keyla nodded.

"I got kinda depressed after the whole thing with Soul because I was being picked on, and people were calling me ugly. Soul had been the one person other than Code who had seen the real me, and I was so happy because of it, that I really thought I was in love with him. So when he left, I thought I had nothing to live for. I thought about ways to make the pain go away. I even thought about cutting myself, which did not sit well with Code, which is why he came to live with us. Code was the light that brought me back out of the darkness, and I don't ever think I'll be able to show him just how much he means to me because of it."

All of the girls looked down at her, but all were having similar thoughts about their own partners.

"I understand," Tsubaki said. "Blackstar may act like an idiot sometimes, but he really is considerate. Like when I had to battle with the sacred sword, he sat by my side, cheering me on and protecting me. I've…"Tsubaki paused to wipe her tears. "I've always held respect for him, but that seemed to bring out something more."

"Patti and I know where you're coming from too," Liz said, looking at her little sister who had a sad smile on her face too. "When we lived on the streets, it was hell. We did things that we can never take back and will haunt us forever. But the day that Kid came and took us away from all that was the best day of our lives. That's why we've sworn to never fail him and to help him to get through everything. Especially that OCD ness of his." This caused everyone one to laugh at the young Reaper who was not present to defend his actions. Keyla looked to Maka who had fresh tears rolling down her face.

"Soul…he's…an idiot. The King of all idiots. That…uncool bastard," she said before looking up at everyone with a smile. "Again, Keyla, I'm really sorry for all the hell he put you through. But I'm sure he didn't mean any harm that he caused. To be honest, he and Code have a lot in common." Maka looked away as she remembered the long scar that now adorned Soul's chest because of his sacrificing himself to protect her from Crona's attack.

"_I am your weapon partner, Maka. That means I am always ready to die for my meister!"_

She remembered the feeling of dread she felt as she watched his face contort in pain and his blood spill and pool around her. She remembered crying and feeling numb as she thought about losing him. She also remembered the promise she made to get stronger so that they could protect each other.

"Ok, enough of this moping around. We're here to have fun and to talk trash about the boys," Liz said as a smile came to her face and a wine cooler was held in the air.

"Yeah!" Patti cheered, following her sister's lead.

"Agreed," Tsubaki said, holding up her glass of wine while Keyla smiled and held her own.

"To dealing with annoying boys and their stupid mucho complex!" She cheered. Maka smiled and held up her can of soda, her worries temporarily forgotten.

"You got that right!"


End file.
